GREENWICH, N.Y. — For most Americans today, our introduction to whaling comes in the form of the classic novel Moby Dick. This often assigned (and much maligned) high school reading tells the tale of the crazed Captain Ahab whose obsession with a white whale named Moby Dick ultimately leads to his and his crew’s doom on the high seas. While Moby Dick is a fictional tale it represents a time when whaling was an important industry in the United States and when American whalers dominated the trade worldwide.
Whaling in some form in America is believed to have started with Native American peoples. While there is evidence of deliberate whale hunting amongst tribes in the Pacific Northwest, tribes on the East Coast appear to have only used whales out of opportunity when one happened to wash up on shore. This practice is often referred to as drift whaling.
In the early years of Colonial New England coastal communities engaged in drift whaling also. It became an important part of life in these communities as inhabitants would regularly comb the beaches to see if a creature had washed ashore. In the 1640s a shore whaling operation on Long Island was established in which men in smaller boats hunted whales that appeared within rowing distance from shorelines. This practice was instituted in other places throughout New England as well (Dolin, p.46).
Whales were hunted for two items predominantly: blubber and baleen. Blubber is a thick layer of fat on the inside of a whale’s skin. Blubber was boiled to make oil which could be used for lighting and heating purposes. Whale oil was used to make candles and later as an illuminant for lamps. Later, whale oil was a popular lubricant for machinery. Some whales instead of teeth have baleen which are used to filter the foods they consume. These long baleen strips (sometimes called whalebone) are made of the same substance as human finger nails and were used in a wide range of tools like buggy whips and fishing rods. It was more often used in the world of fashion as baleen was used to make apparel and accessories like corsets, hoop skirts, umbrellas, hats, suspenders, collars, hair brushes, and more (Dolin, p. 356).
By the 1720s the island of Nantucket off the coast of Massachusetts became a hub for American whaling due to the beginning of deep-sea whaling. As whale numbers closer to shores dwindled whalers sought whales farther out into the ocean making longer trips to find them. Nantucket offered a good launching point for these deep-sea trips (Dolin, p. 91). Whalers sought any kind of whale and in whaling regions they primarily hunted Right whales, Humpback whales, and smaller Pilot whales. However, from the 18th-century onward the most prized whale was the Sperm whale.
Sperm whales were sought after more than any other whale because of their unique offerings. First, sperm whale blubber made oil that was cleaner burning and more valuable than other kinds of whale oil. Second, Sperm whales contain a unique organ in their heads called spermaceti. When added to oil, spermaceti made for brighter light. Spermaceti candles, for instance, were of a higher quality and considered a luxury good at the time. The substance also had medicinal uses. Third, Sperm whale stomachs and intestines contain a substance called ambergris which is believed to help them digest squids. Ambergris was used in a fixative in perfumes and some food items to help them last longer (Dolin, p. 85-86).
While Sperm whales offered the most profit they came with the most danger and difficulty to whalers. Sperm whales are harder to locate and are known to be aggressive meaning they fought back more often when attacked. A flip up or smack down of its tail could easily capsize or smash a whale boat. They might also use their heads to ram boats and even chomp boats with their powerful jaws. Because of this tendency whalers often said sperm whales were “dangerous at both ends” (Dolin, p. 88)
By the time of the American Revolution the U.S. whaling industry consisted of about 360 ships that brought back thousands of barrels of whale oil and thousands of pounds of baleen each year. However, the industry would come to a halt during the Revolution as whaling ships became targets of the British navy. Whale ships would be outrightly destroyed or taken over by British frigates. There was some recovery after the Revolution but the outbreak of the War of 1812 caused similar effects to the industry.
After this conflict though, the industry entered what is often referred to as “The Golden Age of Whaling.” From 1815 through the 1850s fleets of American whale ships were slowly built up and were soon sailing the globe in search of whales. Whale ships began sailing to South American waters where there were large whale populations. They also started sailing around South America to hunt in the Pacific Ocean. At its height in 1846 there were 900 whaleships worldwide and 735 of those ships were American (Dolin, p.205-206).
Whaling voyages during this time got longer averaging about four years in length. Ships would remain at sea until they had filled their ships with oil and other products. The faster they were able to do this, the faster they could return home. Whale ships at this time were large square-rigged ships that featured 3-5 smaller rowing whale boats. Crews consisted of around 30-35 men. While whaling outfits sought experienced seamen, they would take anyone who was willing to sign on regardless of experience, background, race, or character (Dolin, p.221-225). The familiar image of sailors as a scurvy band of rapscallions and misfits was sometimes the truth when it came to whaling crews.
As one can assume whaling was a dangerous, dirty, and often grisly profession. The process of hunting and processing a whale involved constant vigilance from the crow’s nest of the ship. When a whale was spotted the lookout would alert the crew. Men would then be lowered into the whale boats and row after the whale. Once within striking distance a crewman would hurl a single harpoon into the whale which was attached to the boat via a rope.
From this position the whale could do three things: swim away, dive, or retaliate. If it dove the line would be cut or else the boat would be dragged under the water. If it retaliated the crews had to be prepared to jump off or face the wrath of an angry whale coming after their boat. If it swam, crews had to be ready to hold on as the whale would drag them along the surface of the water in what was often referred to as a “Nantucket Sleighride.” The goal was to tire out the whale from dragging the boat. Once the whale was exhausted the boat would pull up along the whale and attempt to pierce its heart or lungs with a lance.
If they made a successful kill the whale would be dragged back to the main ship for processing. Hoisting the whale against the starboard (right) side of the ship cutting stages similar to hanging scaffolding were erected around the whale where crews would remove the blubber and baleen (if any). The blubber would be cut into long heavy strips. Once on deck, blubber was cut down further and then boiled in large iron pots to extract the oil in a process called “trying out.” Once the oil was extracted it was deposited into casks and stored in the cargo.

The cutting and trying out process made the deck extremely messy and slippery. If a crewman remained unscathed on the hunt he had to remain on guard during the processing or he may slip into the water, be hurt by a 1,000-pound piece of blubber, or burned with scalding oil.
During this Golden Age New Bedford, Massachusetts became the hub of American whaling with the city revolving almost entirely around the trade. The success of whaling made it one of the wealthiest cities in the country. In the 1840s whalers began to venture into the Arctic after the discovery of Bowhead whales in its regions. Bowheads offered more blubber and longer baleen strips making them appealing to whalers. With this development San Francisco, California became a whaling hub as well since it was easier to reach Arctic waters from the West Coast.
American whaling reached its peak in 1853. Whalers killed around 8,000 whales that year producing 103,000 barrels of sperm whale oil, 260,000 barrels of whale oil, and 5.7 million pounds of baleen totaling around $11 million in sales from whale products. During this peak period the whaling industry was the U.S.’s fifth largest industry and employed around 70,000 people (Dolin, p. 206).
However, the beginnings of the industry’s demise started during this Golden Era. In the 1840s kerosene and oil made from hog fat began to challenge whale oil as a light source. In 1859 crude oil was discovered in Pennsylvania. With this discovery kerosene could be made more easily, and not long after this development petroleum took over as the main source for lighting, heating, and other uses that whale oil traditionally fulfilled (Dolin, p.335-336).
Throughout the second half of the 1800s whaling’s focus shifted to baleen. Women’s fashions of the day which included corsets and hoopskirts made from baleen kept the industry afloat until the end of the 19th century. But when this style fell out of fashion in the early 1900s America’s whaling industry quickly fell with it as there was no longer a market for whale products (Dolin, p.356). The Civil War, dwindling whale stocks, disasters in the Arctic in 1871 and 1876 which destroyed many whaleships, and American whalers’ unwillingness to update practices also contributed to the industry’s downfall.
After the American whaling industry fell, Norway became the world’s leader in whaling. Whaling in other nations continued through the 20th century and the practice reached its peak in the 1960s. In the 1970s anti-whaling movements sprang up across the world and in 1986 the International Whaling Commission banned commercial whaling due to the overexploitation of whale stocks. Some countries have avoided this ban through various means, so whaling does still take place today. Some species of whales remain at threatened or endangered levels, however improvements have been made in whale populations through conservation efforts implemented in the past 40 years. While America’s whaling heyday ended long ago, the practice remains in conversation around the world today.
Chandler Hansen grew up and lives in Easton, NY. He is a graduate of Gordon College where he earned a bachelor’s degree in History. He serves as a writer and editor for Morning Ag Clips.